The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Land Mobile Radio (LMR) systems are deployed by organizations requiring instant communication between geographically dispersed and mobile personnel. Current LMR systems can be configured to provide for radio communications between one or more sites and subscriber radio units in the field. A subscriber radio unit (hereinafter “radio”) may be a mobile unit or a portable unit. LMR systems can be as simple as two radio units communicating between themselves over preset channels, or they can be complex systems that include hundreds of radio units and multiple sites. Typical users of LMR systems include police departments, fire departments, medical personnel, security personnel, EMS, and the military.
Radios deployed in LMR systems may face various difficulties depending upon their use, environment, and other circumstances, thereby compromising communication in certain situations. For example, firefighters often work in high, unpredictable noise environments where the volume of the ambient noise changes unpredictably due to various factors, such as changes in the environment. Therefore, a firefighter may need to constantly adjust the volume setting of his portable radio in response to the variations of the ambient noise. However, when a firefighter is fully equipped at a fire scene, his radio is usually inaccessible. For example, the radio may be worn in a location that is inconvenient to access, or the firefighter has limited use of his hands because he is wearing gloves or using tools. As such, the firefighter is unable to conveniently control the volume setting of his portable radio.